I have returned! We rolled into Columbus around 3AM this morning from our adventures in New York. My parents have since departed for Fairfield but, oh, how the memories are still fresh. :)

10 Vacation Memories

1. Our rented cabin on the lake was very rustic and very in need of a makeover. Up until two years ago an older gentleman lived there in his happy years of retirement before passing away. His daughter now rents it out and Ray’s shag carpet still sways. BUT the cabin was nestled on Lake Champlain with an incredible view of water and the shore of Vermont.
2. Getting into the lake was a little more challenging, however. There was no dock to speak of and, therefore, rock-climbing skills came in handy. Mine were…uh…lacking at several moments. I now have a bruise the size of a grapefruit on my knee from my little slip on the stones. It’s in the gross yellow/purple stage. Tilly and I went swimming for a bit but the water was very chilly. Dogs in water are so fun!
3. Vacation for the Clark’s means hours of reading. Literally. Besides exploring our surroundings we jump into stories and chew up words until our eyes hurt. All of us kids inherited this love of reading. Preparation for vacations in years of past not only meant remembering the sunscreen and packing the cooler – it also meant gathering stacks of the plastic-protected books and scanning their bar codes at the library. I had the lovely opportunity to read four books this week, including my book club book (see previous misc. mon. list), a quirky, disheveled read that I wouldn’t really recommend. However, People of Sparks was a-dorable and plan to save them for my own kiddies to read one day.
4. I got crafty with my mom. Finished one crochet project and she helped me with the pattern for the next one. My new color palette for the current project reminds me of cotton candy. I’ll keep you updated. :) My mom is quite the artsy crafter. I will believe until the day I die that she could make ANY craft put in front of her.
5. The little town our cabin was in had only two or three restaurant establishments to boast. One was a walk-up, snack shackesque, little place named Ethel’s Dew Drop Inn. Ethel opened the place with her belated husband in1973. She still runs it despite it burning down once and losing her husband. The article posted by the ordering window said it kept her going when she didn’t think going was possible. Specializing in ice cream and your typical snacky foods, Ethel’s place has become the town favorite. We were puzzled by the first food listed though: a Michigan. Curiosity got the best of my dad and he ordered it. Well, folks, it was just a chili dog. New Yorkers, why do you call them that?
6. The nearest “big” town was Plattsburgh, NY. In that town I may have found one of the best cup of coffee. A popular coffee brand up there is Green Mountain Coffee. Their fair trade Sumatra should be named dreamy, steamed goodness instead.
7. We took a ferry across the lake and toured the original Ben and Jerry Ice Cream Factory in Burlington, Vermont. Fun times and a free Imagine Whirled Peace ice cream sample. :) The funniest part was an actual graveyard for retired/”dead” flavors with bonafide gravestones and epitaphs. The worse flavor in the company’s history was Sugar Plum – a plum ice cream with caramel swirls. Yuck. It was on the shelves for two weeks during a December before they yanked it. People wouldn’t even take it for free because it was so gross.
8. When we were visiting Lake George (a very resorty area -where tons of Jersey folks go to vacay), we rented kayaks. Talk about a workout for the back and arms! Once we got the hang of steering it was fun.
9. On our way back to Ohio we took a detour to Niagra Falls. Though we’ve seen the falls a few times, this turned out to be more of a fiasco this time around. Apparently, as of June 1, 2009, some custom policies have changed. You must have a U.S. passport to get back into the States from Canada. I remember when it used to be just a person in a booth, asking, “What’s your business?” Ah, well. It took some time proving we weren’t armed and dangerous and after a scolding from both countries we were on our merry way again.
10. The whole purpose for choosing upstate New York was to visit Laurie while she works for Youthworks at the Adirondack site. The Adirondack Mountains are b-e-a-utiful. Needless to say, I’m prouder than a peacock when it comes to my sister. It brought back a lot of memories of my own Youthworks time in New Orleans. I can’t wait until she’s back in this state.